Badger On Tour

VANCOUVER PT.1

Living for the mountains.

After a very drunken and excitable time in Seattle i made my way across the boarder into Canada and to Vancouver. It is a little strange to be writing this 4 weeks after the fact as I'm sure i felt differently but my memory remembers things as being very strange. I crossed the border by bus and unfortunately was bombarded by the Canadian pessimism from every angle. This was alarming to say the least but i steadily made my way to my room in renfrew-collingwood and unpacked my things for the weeks ahead. 

The first day was a beautiful one; the autumn colours certainly weren't disappointing and the sky was a true blue. I made a list of things to be done and set about the day, the highlight of this was buying a sweet 2 wheeled ride from the local 2nd hand shop. Vancouver is a great place to cycle as long as you want the firmest thighs this side of the Atlantic. There are hills everywhere and i spent much of my first week sweating it out peddling up and down them with determination.

As much as i would like this blog post to be a happy one i have to say my first week in Vancouver was a tough one. After initially arriving i got the fear, i got the fear BAD. Everything seems so clear before you begin and then once you are in it you have no idea what you are doing. I felt very isolated in the apartment and a sweaty cold wasn't helping. Following a particularly embarrassing incident at the bank where i cried at a cash register i forced myself to make a list of everything i wanted from this trip and how i was going to achieve it. Here is some of that list:

1. See a whale
2. Hike a mountain
3. Bike through Stanley Park
4. Kayak in the ocean
5. Enjoy a day of doing absolutely nothing 
6. Swim in as many places as possible
7. Meet someone amazing
8. See something you have never seen before
9. Be inspired
10. Read more books

After much deliberation i realised i shouldn't be trying to recreate my life in London and actually what i really wanted was to travel as much as possible and not stop in one place. So i threw my old plan out of the window, stopped my box of belongings from leaving the UK, sold my bike, gave notice on my room and booked a flight to Toronto. 

I emailed everyone i knew who lived anywhere near where i was going and started planning. As soon as i made this decision i felt 100% better. I was still nervous about my decision but looking back i can officially say it was the right one. I don't know what will be happening in the next few months but i am excited to find out. 

Back to Vancouver i had decided to move into a hostel and start having some fun so on the sunday after i arrived i made my way into town to meet a friend for lunch and move my stuff. It was a thousand times better and i made some excellent friends. Now that that is done i can tell you some of the GREAT things about Vancouver in Part.2!